Confusing connection info on regular trains Tirano to Chur

Posted by susan (lake forest park, washington, usa) on 03/03/26 06:36 PM

I have asked quite a few questions on the Forum about the Bernina route. And I appreciate all the great information I have received. I have decided to take the regular trains (designated R or RE) vs. the Panoramic Train (designated PE).

The information on on the SBB app and on the Rhaetian Railway website is confusing - so many stations, stops and transfers with very little time in between 3 -13 minutes). I have emailed the Railway asking for help (more than a week ago) and have received no response.
I will be traveling on Saturday May 2, which is a holiday week-end in most of Europe (May Day). So I am thinking I would like to reserve my ticket rather than stand in a long line in Tirano. But there may be a problem with that. If I buy a ticket from Tirano to Chur on The Rhb with a reservation will I be free to take whatever R or RE train comes at a convenient time for my transfer(s) or will I be restricted to specific trains? I think this may be the key question. If I am missing something, please let me know. Thank you so much for information. Susan

Posted by acraven

Washington DC

03/03/26 07:10 PM

30333 posts

I can't confidently answer your question about ticketing, but I found this text on the SBB website (https://www.sbb.ch/en/tickets-offers/tickets/point-to-point-tickets-switzerland/individual-tickets/outward-return.html--click on "Validity":

"Point-to-point tickets are valid for the calendar day specified at the time of purchase. The period of validity starts at midnight and ends at 5am the following day...

"You can break up your journey along the selected route as often as you like and get on and off the train at any stop..."

I did the Bernina trip in reverse in 2024, and I took multiple trains before I even got to Chur. It was a very long (but very scenic) day. My suitcase weighed over 30 lb. and I am 74 years old. I had no trouble with the transfers. I can't say for sure I never had to deal with steps, but many of the stations in that area are very small. Some have only two tracks, so you just walk a few feet across the platform.

Search for suitable trains here: https://www.sbb.ch/en, select one of the options and look at the details in the right panel on your screen. Click on "Show map" at each transfer point, and you'll see a platform diagram. There's not much traffic going through the stations on the Bernina line, so it won't be like trying to change trains in a big city.

Posted by susan OP

lake forest park, washington, usa

03/03/26 08:59 PM

181 posts

Thank you acraven! Your information enabled me to do what I needed to do. I have my reserved tickets to Chur from Tirano via Pontresino and Samedan on my desired date. It continued to be a struggle to purchase via the SBB website. After a couple of problems there I decided to try using the app which I already have on my phone. It worked just fine!! This is a relief.

Posted by SwissNomad

Switzerland

03/04/26 09:23 AM

394 posts

I buy a ticket from Tirano to Chur on The Rhb with a reservation will
I be free to take whatever R or RE train comes at a convenient time
for my transfer(s) or will I be restricted to specific trains?

Since you use ‘reservation’ a few times I will point out that having a ticket for the journey, as you now do, is not the same thing as having a seat reservation. Reservations are always separate.

Take note of this helpful information provided by Wengenk in another post:

“Normal tickets in Switzerland are for a route, and are always available. You just must make sure you have your ticket before you board the train. So no need to be afraid of missing out.
However, the regional trains are far from empty nowadays. The Bernina Railway is a victim of its success, and RhB is planning to increase service on the line substantially. However getting new trains takes time...
Because of this Regional trains now tend to suffer from crowding too. And RhB now even offers reservations there as well:
https://www.rhb.ch/en/tickets/bernina-line-reservations/
However, because these reservations are not targeted by tour operators you do not need to get them months in advance.”

Posted by Larry

03/04/26 03:36 PM

3090 posts

Hey acraven, I want to thank you for your reply here. I had been having a tad of trouble clarifying the sbb maps for the route, but rechecked today after your reply. We are taking the regional from Zurich to Tirano next month, and planning to get off one or two times for, well, just because. Bernina Diavolezza and/or Alp Grum. I now can clearly see that the subsequent regionals (which we had already booked out of Zurich for that AM) do stop at both. And even reminds me that should we take too long to get going that morning we can still take the next train from Zurich an hour later (but only one stop. Oddly, whether we stop once or twice we have take the 17:09 in Tirano to continue to Varenna.)